Bill Farmer
Bill Farmer is an American voice actor and comedian. He is likely best known for voicing the iconic Disney characters Goofy and Pluto. He also voices some lesser known Disney characters such as, Horace Horsecollar. Personal Life Farmer was born William Robert Farmer on November 14, 1952 in Pratt, Kansas. Ever since his childhood, Farmer was enamored with cartoons. He learned that he had a knack for doing voices and of all the characters he liked, the character Goofy was whom he liked best. Farmer's first job, at the age of 15, involved doing voices, especially those of Western stars like John Wayne or Walter Brennan. He and his friends would sometimes go through fast food drive-thrus and order foods in his character voices. Bill attended the University of Kansas, and is a member of the Sigma Chi Fraternity. In college, he found work in radio and TV and then moved on to stand-up comedy as an impressionist until he moved out to Hollywood, where he began voicing Goofy in January 1987. In 1982, while he was still doing stand-up comedy, Farmer worked at a comedy club called the Comedy Corner in Dallas, Texas. He continued to work there until his move to Hollywood in 1986. Farmer's decision to move to California came from a Dallas commercial agent who suggested that, given his talent for voices, he should try his luck in California. He was recently married, but he and his wife talked it over and came to an arrangement. She stayed back in Dallas while he commuted for a year after he got an apartment. Then four months after his moving out to Hollywood, his agent asked him if he could do any Disney characters. His very first animated character audition was for Goofy. When he auditioned for the voice, he studied all the cartoons with Goofy in them, especially the ones released in the 1930s. He studied the hilarious laugh and the distinctive "gawrsh". He inherited the voice of Goofy (as well as Pluto and Horace Horsecollar), around the same time Tony Anselmo inherited Donald Duck, and Wayne Allwine and Russi Taylor did likewise for Mickey and Minnie Mouse, respectively. Farmer believes that cartoon voices are not about funny voices, but rather acting. His mentor was Daws Butler, the voice behind many of the Hanna-Barbera characters. Butler put it in Farmer's mind that when doing cartoon voices, you're not merely doing a funny voice, you're an actor and the acting is premier and that you have to think like the character you're doing. Roles Mickey and Friends Roles *Goofy (1987–present) *Pluto (1990–present) *Horace Horsecollar (1990–present) *Practical Pig (2001–present) *The Prince and the Pauper - Weasel Other Disney Roles *Sleepy *Dodo *Sheriff of Nottingham *Beauty and the Beast- Additional voices *The Hunchback of Notre Dame - Additional voices *Hercules - Additional voices *Beauty and the Beast: The Enchanted Christmas - Additional voices *Pocahontas II: Journey to a New World - Additional voices *Brother Bear - Additional voices *Home on the Range - Additional voices *Toy Story - Additional voices *A Bug's Life - Additional voices *Toy Story 2 - Additional voices *Monsters, Inc. - Additional voices *Cars - Additional voices *Monsters University - Additional voices *The 7D - Doc and Sir Yipsalot *Jake and the Never Land Pirates - Ghostly Bob Gallery clipgoofywonder.gif|Goofy Disney-Pluto.gif|Pluto Horace-Horsecollar-horace-horsecollar-19508287-1008-749.jpg|Horace Category:People Category:Living People Category:Voice Actors/Actresses Category:Disney Category:Real world articles